The Adventures of Magical Girl Homura Akemi
by kamikazarii
Summary: Shy and frail Homura Akemi has been given a second chance at life to be a great and powerful magical girl. She wants to save lives and create a better future, but is she up to the challenge? PMMM as told from Homura's POV. Warnings: some swearing and violence
1. Enter Homura Akemi: Magical girl!

"Ah, today is the day." Morning sunlight streamed into the hospital room, illuminating the sterility of the hospital room with its dry, white sheets and walls. A heart monitor stood guard next to her, silently flashing each heart beat in red waves. On the wall was Homura's September calendar, with every little milestone marked with a different color. "Discharge today?" was outlined with a star. "First day of school" was emphasized with bright red highlighter. A pamphlet, permission forms, and a list of school supplies lay on the tray table.

Homura lay on the bed, her dark eyes scanning the ceiling. Yesterday she had begged and pleaded to be released, and her wish was finally coming true. A knock came from the door. "Homura, are you awake yet?", her father's voice called from the other side of the door.

"Yes, Dad, I'm awake!" The door opened, revealing Satoshi and Naomi Akemi, her parents. When they approached the bed, Homura smelled her mother's jasmine perfume and the smell of grilled fish and leather on her father and closed her eyes.

 _Ah, it smells like home._

"Oh my, today is the day you get to come home!" her mother wrapped her in a tight hug.

"We talked to your nurse just now, she is filling out the discharge papers and you will go home with a few transplant medications." her dad smiled as looked at Homura, their dark violet eyes mirroring each other.

The smiling nurse entered the room, holding a tray of papers and a tray full of tea. She smiled unsteadily. Homura kept her eyes fixed on the nurse's foot path. As she strolled carefully towards Homura and her family, her foot caught on a heart monitor stand. The nurse, tea, and papers fell in a magnificent _splash_ -crack- _scream_ in all different directions and everyone including the nurse took it as a bad omen.

However, it was a beautiful day to return to one's home after being away for so long. The air smelled crisp and it was bright and sunny. Homura's family had a house in the middle of the city, close to her middle school.

"Welcome back, big sister!" The air popped and sparkled with confetti as Homura's little brothers pulled brightly colored crackers in Homura's face when the family got home.

Homura giggled as she wiped the confetti off her glasses. There was even a cake for her in the middle of their dining room table.

Despite the warm welcome, Homura couldn't stop thinking about how her first day of school was going to go next week. No friends, all new places, and she had all of these school lessons that she still needed to catch up on. The feeling of anxiety and dread settled like dead weight in her spine, anchoring her to the bed.

"You can get through this, you've transferred schools before, you can do it again. Everything will be okay." She kept repeating this over and over again as she got on the train and then walked to school. She repeated the mantra as she hid in the bathroom before class so nobody would see her standing outside the classroom, waiting for sensei in the hall.

"What the hell is taking so long?" She put her ear to the door. Hearing sensei's rant about men, she deflated a little. By the time Sensei called her name, Homura was starting to get nervous again. The rows of students stared at her. Homura stared back, feeling like she was drowning in the sea of faces, as friendly as they were.

Sooner or later it was break time.

"Akemi-san, is it true that you were bedridden for half a year?" A round-faced girl with wavy hair asked her.

"I heard it's really difficult, how are you going to catch up to the lessons?" An exceptionally thin one joined the conversation.

They sounded like they were just curious, but the answers kept getting stuck on the way from Homura's brain to her mouth, since she herself, sincerely didn't know.

"Come on, everyone. Give her some room to breathe!" A short girl in twin pigtails jumped in. Her face was round and soft, the eyes large and doe-like. "Isn't it time for you to take your medicine, Miss Akemi? I'm the nurse's aide, so I'll show you where the nurse's office is." The girl's tiny hands were at Homura's elbow and she felt herself being whisked away by the student. Homura stared at the back of the girl's head, "Wow, she has such nice hair. I wish I were brave enough to wear ribbons with that kind of pattern." The girl wore the same cream and black uniform as all of the other female students, but her hair ribbons just barely skated the edge of the school dress code. Even though they were a solid bright red, there were gold threads woven into the fabric which bounced off prismatic rainbows in the sunlight.

"My name is Madoka Kaname, you can call me Madoka. I hope I can call you Homura, too." Madoka turned around and smiled at her.

Homura startled at the friendliness,"Um, yes, of course. I don't get called by my first name very often, it's kind of a weird name, like someone gave me a last name."

"Not at all!" Madoka exclaimed, "It means flame, like you're a passionate and firey person, so you'll have to live up to it and act like you're really cool!" Homura felt more like a wet match in a dark cave than someone whose name sets up expectations of a person who burns brightly.

"Anyhow", Madoka continued, "Don't be scared of the other students, they're just excited because you're a transfer student and we've never gotten one."

"I suppose so, I-I guess it wouldn't do me any good to act like I don't want to make friends."

'That's the spirit!"

"Well, here we are at the nurse's office. If you need help with anything, just let me know!"

After lunch was math class. Mr. Takahashi , the math teacher called her up to the board. "Okay Miss Akemi, how about you try to solve this problem on the board." Homura walked up the aisles, feeling the others' stares boring into her back. Her homeschooling had already covered this topic so she felt ready, but as soon as she got up to the board, it felt like everyone's gaze was paralyzing her. Her hand shook as she held up the chalk. _"What if everyone could see that I'm shaking?"_ She started to sweat, her glasses fogging up and starting to slip off. _"Oh no, my chalk is in one hand, my book is in the other!"_

"Oh, I forgot, Akemi-san has been out of school for a while. She's not caught up yet, I'm sorry Miss Akemi. Mr. Taisho, how about you solve this one." Homura felt simultaneous defeat and relief.

Physical education class went about as well as math class. The teacher had everyone break up into groups, with hers start with a jog around the running track. The boys, in their navy and red uniforms, were running along the soccer field. The girls stretched in groups, chatting and laughing in their white shirts and red bloomers. At first, Homura was excited to go. Her muscles felt a bit heavy from using them to only lay in hospital sheets for a long time. She hadn't even reached the first lap when her chest squeezed tightly, such pain radiating into her neck. She gasped for air and stopped running, her head spinning

"Homura, are you okay?!" Suddenly, Madoka Kaname appeared next to her, a look of concern on her angelic face.

"Y-yes, I think I'll be okay." Sweat poured down Homura's face.

"Here, let me help you get to the shade." Homura felt Madoka's hand grasp her elbow. They walked to the bleachers, where Homura sat down with an undiginfied "thump" under the shade. She looked out and saw some of the other girls staring at her.

" _This is so embarassing. I can't even do warm-ups without needing to sit down."_

Initially, some of the other girls asked her to eat lunch with them, but every time they asked her a question it felt like her tongue was numb. Her answers felt so stupid sounding bouncing through her head. _"Maybe they got tired of hanging around someone who stutters and isn't good at anything,"_ she kicked herself mentally after school.

The next day as Homura prepared to eat her bento alone, Madoka and her friend came up to her. "Homura-chan, would you like to eat with us today?" Sayaka smiled at her. "I'm Sayaka, it's nice to meet you." Sayaka was a bit taller than Madoka, her hair in a silky bob that fell in a shield over her head. Her face was a bit larger than Madoka's, and it had a boldness about it that cut a sharp profile. They walked up to the school rooftop to eat. It was sunny. There were a few other students hanging around, enjoying the breezy autumn weather and view of the campus.

"So Homura-chan, how do you like the school?" Madoka asked, then biting into a sandwich.

"Oh, it's okay," she replied, unsure if she should talk about how lonely she was. "Everyone seems nice, but it's a big school."

"How big was your old school?" Sayaka asked.

"It was a small private school in Tokyo. I went there for a few years, but my dad came to work here for a job. That's when I got transferred here."

They chatted for a bit more, and finally it was time to go back to classes. Homura thought about the conversation, thinking about Madoka and Sayaka. She hoped so badly that they could all be friends.

Homura walked home, reflecting upon her week. " _I'm just not good at anything."_

Her own voice whispered to her, " _Yes, you can't do anything right. You'll never be anything more than a weakling."_

"I'll never be anything more than a weakling", she spoke to herself.

 _Maybe you should just die._

"Maybe I should just die."

She was so embroiled in feeling sorry for herself, she almost didn't notice the air becoming foggier. But, something was off about this fog. Instead of being like steam, it was more like the industrial smoke of factories, only without the smell. It was thick, and she coughed. _"_ Where am I? This doesn't look familiar at all!" A couple of figures emerged from the miasma. She initially thought they were people, but they were so strange looking. They were white shapes with neon colored arms and legs, like a video game character pasted into reality, moving menacingly towards her, looking unreal in iridescent, shifting colors.

Homura screamed, but she was frozen, too frightened to move. A white, hand-like tentacle came near her. She closed her eyes, willing someone to find her.

A bright bolt of pink light shot through the black cloud, exploding the ground and blasting into the figures. The tentacles reeled sharply back, as if in pain. When Homura opened her eyes, two girls landed in front of her. There was a pink haired girl, with pigtails and a frilly, cake-like dress with ribbons that sparkled like frosting and candy. To her left, a pretty, older girl with a cascade of golden ringlets. The yellow haired one had on an outfit that matched her hair, but hers looked like a gunslinger outfit in brown leather.

"You're safe now, Homura-chan!"

Homura adjusted her glasses and squinted. "Miss Kaname?" She only had time to do that much before the two girls jumped to dodge a tentacle stabbing at them. They jumped to impossibly high heights before a shower of glittering pink rain and golden ribbon showered Homura and the monsters. The monsters shuddered, melting before the pink fire. Others were caught in the golden ribbons, bound tightly.

"What are they?" Homura wondered aloud.

"They're magical girls." A new voice next to her. She looked to her side. It's red eyes shone at her without blinking. They looked more like elevator buttons, so flat, but shone with an inner light. At first, it looked like a rabbit, or cat with long ears. But the closer she looked, the less it seemed like an animal and more like a caricature of one.

 _Magical girls, eh?_


	2. I'll save you, Madoka!

Homura loved to come on adventures with Madoka. She and Mami always looked so beautiful when they were in battle, looking like they dancing rather than fighting monsters.

But one day, a witch arrived that was as strong as seven witches combined, Walpurgisnacht. Walpurgisnacht laughed even while Mami's bullets tore her blue dress, but they had as much effect on her as raindrops would. With one swipe, Walpurgisnacht crushed Mami into a skyscraper, and her body lay uselessly in the cracked concrete. Now, the only one left to fight Walpurgisnacht was Madoka.

"Please be careful, Miss Kaname! I couldn't stand to go to school without you." Homura cried, holding Madoka's hands. Madoka's frilly cupcake dress was stained and torn. Her face looked tired, but she smiled. "I'll be okay, Homura-chan. As long as you have faith in me, I know I can save the city."

But she couldn't.

Homura was standing safely under a building, when a familiar hurtled towards her. Madoka heard Homura's cry for help, and when she took a moment to shoot arrows at the beast ready to devour Homura, Walpurgisnaght took advantage of the momentary distraction. Bursting into metallic laughter, Walpurgisnaght swept a white hand over Madoka, and sent her flying into concrete. Madoka slumped over.

"Miss Kaname!" Homura cried. She ran as quickly as she could to Madoka's side, tripping over rocks and broken wood.

Walpurgisnacht was still laughing, but now it had started to rain heavily. Madoka was lying in a puddle when Homura finally found her.

"Oh Miss Kaname," Homura sobbed as she held Madoka's gloved hand. "To think that you died to save someone like me!" Tears streamed down her dirty face. "I wish that I could have saved you!"

"You can save her, if you want to." The white cat-rabbit that was always following around Madoka slinked around and hopped onto Madoka's still chest. "Let me introduce myself. I am "Incubator." I can grant any wish you want, but in exchange you must become a magical girl and fight witches like Madoka and Mami. Make a contract with me, and I'll grant any wish you want. You can save Miss Kaname, if you really want to."

"Really? I can save Miss Kaname if I become a magical girl?"

"Definitely. I think you have enough potential to make that kind of wish."

"Okay," Homura said, determinedly. "I want to re-do my meeting with Miss Kaname. But this time, I want to become strong enough to protect her this time!"

Incubator's red eyes glinted, the mouth forming a small smile. "Your wish has overcome entropy. You'll have your wish!"

Homura suddenly felt a searing pain, the worst headache possible. She felt like she was being ripped apart, and the world went white.

* * *

 _Restart_

* * *

Morning sunlight streamed through the white curtains, illuminating the sterility of the room. The heart monitor beeped gently. Homura awoke, trying to shake the feeling of wetness from her eyes and hair.

" _Was it all a dream? I'm still at the hospital?"_

But something was in her hand. A small, egg-like violet gem encased in ornate gold was nestled in her hand. She held it up to the light. It looked the ones that Mami and Madoka carried around before transforming into their outfits. She felt her arms and legs. She didn't feel that much different, physically, but the egg-like gem felt like it was pulsating with life. She squeezed the gem, and suddenly it absorbed into her hand, transforming into a large tattoo onto the back of her hand.

A knock came from the door. "Homura, are you awake yet?" It was her father. "Yes, dad, I'm awake!" The door opened, and her parents stood in the doorway.

As soon as her parents entered the room, Naomi Akemi enveloped her daughter in a crushing hug. "Oh my, today is the day you get to come home!"

Something about this situation seemed very familiar.

The nurse entered, carrying a tray of tea and discharge papers. She walked towards the family, tripped over the heart monitor stand, and just like before, papers, tea, and nurse were everywhere.

Yes, definitely familiar.

Homura felt a tingle of excitement. " _Not only am I going to have the opportunity to save Miss Kaname, but it appears that everything was going to happen exactly the way it did, starting from the day I was to be discharged from the hospital."_

As she went through the day, it seemed that nobody remembered that three months had already passed.

For the second time, Homura stood in front of the class, feeling the eyes of all the students on her. But she paid no mind, looking at the sweet face of Madoka. During the break, she made a bee-line for Madoka.

"Good afternoon, Miss Kaname!" Homura chirped enthusiastically.

"Good afternoon, Miss Akemi!" Madoka responded, equally as enthusiastic.

"You're the nurse's aide, right? Can you please show me to the nurse's office? It's time to take my medicine"

"Um, sure." Madoka and sayaka exchanged confused looks before Homura and Madoka walked the familiar path with Homura practically skipping down the hall. "Miss Kaname, I hope we can be friends. Please call me Homura."

"Of course," Madoka stammered. Madoka looked both happy and taken aback.

'I've become a magical girl too, so now we can both fight together!" Homura said, smiling.

"Oh wow, Homura-chan. I had no idea there were other magical girls here. I'll have to introduce you to Miss Mami. She's an older girl who also goes to our school."

"So what kind of powers do you have, Miss Akemi?" Mami asked. Madoka and Mami were standing under the highway, were nobody would see them in magical girl regalia.

"Uh, I actually don't know." Homura blushed. "I haven't tried it out yet."

"Well, give it a shot."

Homura took a deep breath, willing the gem to come out of her hand. It materialized into her palm. She closed her eyes, imaging herself transforming like Sailor Moon, being surrounded by light and colors. Instead, her transformation happened like a bolt of lightning. One moment she was in her sweater and skirt, and a flash of light her clothes became a bit fancier version of a school uniform. On her arm was a polished shield that had pockets on the back of it. On the front of the shield, there were gears that moved and ticked, like a watch.

"Ah, well, maybe with more practice you can come up with a better outfit." Mami said gently, laughing a little. Unlike the other two girls, Homura's transformation didn't come with any makeup or fancy accessories.

Homura tried to think hard to form her magic into a tangible substance, but nothing came up. The three tried for a few hours to test out if Homura had any special powers, but it seemed like the only thing Homura could do was to transform.

Homura sat on her hankerchief, panting from the exertion of trying to beat up an oil barrel.

"Maybe it just takes time." said Madoka comfortingly.

Homura looked at her reflection in a puddle. Glasses. Long braids. She didn't feel like she was anything special.

That night, Homura looked very carefully at her shield. It seemed like nothing special. She tried putting a candy bar in a pocket. Then another, and another. The shield never became heavier. _This pocket is endless! But how does that help me? Maybe I can smuggle dinners onto the train ? Hahahaha_

There was a small button on the shield she hadn't noticed before. She pressed it. Nothing happened. _Huh._

 _I have to come up with something! Maybe I have no powers of my own, but I can learn how to use something! I need to learn how to protect my friends!_

She spent so much time looking up how to make a pipe bomb that it seemed like hours passed. She looked at the clock, but somehow it was still only seven, about half an hour since she got home. Homura walked downstairs to see if dinner was ready. Her brothers were sitting motionless in front of the TV. Her mother stood in front of the stove. Homura felt something was funny about the situation. Her mother was ladling something into a bowl, but the water was frozen mid-air. She waved a hand in front of her mother's face. Nothing.

Homura froze with fear. _What if this is a labyrinth?_ No, it couldn't be. Usually labyrinths were elaborate, candy coated worlds rather than just having everyone frozen.

 _Maybe it's my magic?_

Homura summoned her shield and pressed the button on the side. Suddenly the world was full of noise. The TV started again, and her mother turned to look at her. "Oh! Homura-chan! When did you get here?" she started, dropping the ladle.

 _I can freeze time?!_

Walpurgisnacht came right on time.

With one swipe of her white hand, Walpurgisnacht's red talons tore Mami's head off , and her lifeless body tumbled down in a sweep of blue velvet, the magic seeming to peel off her like clothes.

 _This is my chance!_

Homura jumped from building to building and leapt into Walpurgisnacht's massive face, her tiny form dwarfed by Walpurgisnacht's football-field sized dress. The gears on Homura's shield spun and clicked to a stop as the world around her stilled. The girl threw bombs in strategic places, then jumping onto Walpurgisnacht's dress, and carefully placing a few more bombs. As she jumped off into the air, Homura's shield clicked again and time went back to its normal flow.

"Now, Miss Kaname!"

Madoka nodded, looking at Homura's floating figure. Madoka reached back, and in one release, hundreds of glittering arrows flew towards Walpurgisnacht. Bombs and bolts exploded around Walpurgisnacht in a massive storm of smoke and fire. The witch faltered, dropping in the air. Then it turned towards Madoka.

Walpurgisnacht's wine red lips parted as she opened her mouth to blast a beam of neon green and blinding white light. Madoka jumped, and shot more arrows at Walpurgisnacht. From a distance, Homura took out a bazooka and launched a shot. However, the witch was undeterred, focusing on Madoka.

"Miss Kaname, look out!" Homura's words reached Madoka just in time. As Walpurgisnacht made a swipe for Madoka, she jumped, and delivered a fatal blow to Walpurgisnacht's head, severing it from the body. Both the witch and magical girl hit the ground at the same time.

Homura ran to Madoka's side. Madoka's usually rosy face was pale and dirty from the battle. Homura put her hand on Madoka's waist to steady her.

"I need to lie down now." Madoka's magical girl clothing disappeared in a fall of flower petals, revealing her street clothing. They sat down on a patch of grass. Madoka held up her soul gem, the once bright crystal looking sooty and tarnished. "Homura-chan. I can feel it becoming almost completely dark. Do you have any more grief seeds?" Homura took out the one she had gotten from Walpurgisnacht and put it to Madoka's soul gem, but it did nothing. Madoka sighed. "I must have used too much of my magic during the fight. Will I die now?"

Homura shook her head, dreading what was going to happen.

They watched the gem turn completely black. Then, Madoka, closed her eyes and shuddered. The gem cracked, but the contents did not spill to the ground like Homura expected. Instead, a black ball, like a hole in reality, rose up and formed into something familiar.

 _A grief seed?! Is Madoka becoming a witch?_

The Incubator popped up next to her, looking interested in the small black cloud. "Incubator, why is Madoka turning into a witch?"

"That is the fate of all magical girls. Once their soul gems have become too tainted, or fallen into despair, they become witches."

"You knew that this was going to happen?!" Homura shouted.

There was no time for the incubator to reply. The grief seed suddenly cracked with lightning, and a black shadow absorbed Madoka's body. Homura jumped away, instinctively not wanting it to touch her. The wind howled, and the black shadow became grew to a massive height, swirling like a tornado as it grew. Homura ran away as quickly as she could, but the shadow grew to eclipse the sun. It was starting to rain. She could feel the drops wet her back.

" _No, this isn't the future I wanted either!"_

She wished desperately to start over again, at least before the fight started. She felt the magic in her soul gem pulsating with life, and the gears in her shield start to spin.

* * *

 _Restart_

* * *

Morning sunlight streamed through the white curtains, illuminating the sterility of the room. The heart monitor beeped gently. Homura awoke, trying to shake the feeling of wetness from her eyes and hair.

 _Okay, the past two times I went into the past, Walpurgisnacht came. If Madoka alone tries to fight her, she'll either die or become a witch. So I have to keep Mami alive until the end of the fight._

Homura sighed. A knock came at the door.

 _Here we go again._


	3. Mami and Homura: A Side Story

Author's note: this story could take place at any time during the course of events, but it's important that Mami and Homura have that one moment where Homura finally learns to trust somebody. Enjoy!

* * *

Homura woke up and looked around, remembering she was in Mami's apartment. She and Madoka had slept over at Mami's house to celebrate Madoka's birthday. Homura bought a cake, and there was still glitter everywhere from when they popped crackers. Nobody else had woken up yet. Homura picked up her cell phone and looked to see if she had any messages. She smelled the fragrance of black tea coming from the kitchen.

Mami's golden hair, usually in large ringlets, fell in soft waves without the magic. She turned around and smiled at Homura, a steaming cup in hand. "Good morning, how did you sleep?"

"I slept pretty well- I'm an early riser. Madoka isn't awake yet."

"I see," Mami said, turning back to the pot. "Would you like a cup of tea? We should probably have it in my room, so we don't wake anyone." Homura and Mami crept across the living room and into Mami's bedroom. "I have to finish some homework, so let me type this up real quick and we can chat."

Mami slid back under the covers with her laptop and propped her head up so she could type and write. At first, Homura picked up her cell phone and sat on the other side, trying to read it, but was distracted by the room. It was so pink, and filled with stuffed animals, unlike what she expected of such an elegant and mature person like Mami.

Homura looked sideways at Mami, feeling awkward, and reclined on the bed. Then, tentatively, Homura curled up on her side, facing the other girl. She scooted closer. The pink clocked ticked the seconds. She read the same text message about five times, not absorbing anything.

The covers were so soft. The earthy smell of black tea filled the room. Mami's typing was making a gentle clicking sound every so often. She closed her eyes, the sense of comfort wrapping her like a warmed blanket.

"What's up?"Mami's voice broke through Homura's thoughts.

"Nothing much."Homura replied.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Mami said. "What happened that put you in the hospital for a few months?"

There was silence for a minute while Homura paused, internally struggling whether to make the leap of faith to tell Mami. "I was sick with a really bad virus. It took a long time for me to get better, but then the doctors found out that the virus did some damage my heart. I got a transplant so I was in the hospital for a long time."

"Are you okay now?"

"I think so."

Mami was silent except for typing. Homura held her breath, waiting for Mami to say something pitying, or to reject her.

"I can't possibly imagine what that's like. That must be really hard to go through."

Homura breathed out. "I guess so."

Mami turned to her and smiled. "You don't seem like the kind of person who is really tough, but I feel like you really are. You're just like me."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I felt that when I met you." Mami turned back to her work. Homura said nothing for a long time, just staring Mami's profile with a little smile.

 _Wow, Miss Tomoe is so cool._

The bedroom door was thrown open as Madoka appeared in the doorway. "Are you all continuing the fun without me?" She pouted.

"We were making fun of you, Madoka, that's the entire point of this party!" Mami laughed.

"You all are so mean! Making fun of me after giving me a birthday!" Madoka threw a pillow at Mami.


	4. I'll do whatever it takes!

It occurred to her to one day ask Madoka what she wished for to become a magical girl.

* * *

"Oh, well what happened was, my cat recently, and I felt so sad. I was walking home last Tuesday and I saw a cat get hit by a car. I started crying and wishing that I wasn't so useless to save it when kyubey asked me if I wanted to save it. So I wished for the cat to be restored to proper life and health after it got hit by the car."

 _Last week, huh? That Tuesday was the day that I got discharged from the hospital._

Homura brought out her shield, her dark eyes burning, purple magic swirling around her. " _Okay, let's go back to when I just woke up, then."_

* * *

Homura opened her eyes. Morning sunlight streamed through the white curtains, illuminating the sterility of the room. The heart monitor beeped gently. Homura stared into the ceiling, trying to shake the feeling of wetness from her eyes and hair. There was no time to waste.

She threw off the covers and let the cold tile hit her bare feet. Taking time to change out of her hospital clothing and into the clothes she was wearing when she got admitted, she took a step onto the windowsill and opened the window, feeling the breeze from the open air slide through her long hair and make it into waves.

" _I must stop her from making that wish!"_ Homura thought, moving past the nurse who looked surprised to see her patient up and out of bed already.

* * *

Homura followed around Madoka all day. It felt like she was in some sort of spy movie, constantly tracking one person.

Finally, the cat literally crossed Madoka's path. Madoka had just said goodbye to Sayaka, and walked into a convenience store to buy a snack. She was just walking out with ice cream when the cat ran by. The cat, a fat grey thing with a big fluffy tail, dashed across the road, and Madoka ran after it. Homura flipped a switch on her shield, and time stopped. Homura looked around. She sensed the Incubator lurking in the bushes. Could he sense her too? She walked to it and stopped in front. The red eyes of the Incubator gleamed with interest at the scene in front of it, but were not focused on Homura. Homura sidled up to the alien animal and stopped in front of it. She waved a hand in front of its face. Nothing. The eyes remained as blank and emotionless as a windowpane.

 _"The Incubator must have been waiting for Madoka too."_ Homura thought.

Madoka's figure was frozen, the wind whipping her hair back, ice cream forgotten as she watched the car screech to try to avoid hitting the cat. The cat's running form was still in mid-air. The car was about a foot from the cat's side. Homura very gently, put her hands on the cat. No response from the cat. So Homura placed her hands on the frozen cat and carried it to the other side of the street. Now that was done, Homura stood next to the convenience store, but out of Madoka's sight. She flipped the switch on her shield again, and time resumed. The car screeched in the middle of the street and went to a halt. The driver looked confused, glancing from side to side as he hit nothing. Madoka screamed, the sound fading as she realized the cat was okay on the other side of the road. Propelled by its speed, the cat continued to dash onto the sidewalk.

Homura continued to follow Madoka around, but the day was uneventful otherwise. The Incubator didn't appear at all that day until that night, where it perched on a tree outside Madoka's house. It was a quiet night, the street illuminated by the night lamps turning the cheerful plants outside grey and icy.

" _I'm not taking any chances."_

Homura pulled out a gun and it hit the Incubator dead on. Madoka's head poked out of the window as she looked around for the source of the sound. Homura hid quickly in the shadows, not wanting to be seen. The Incubator's figure fell from the tree where it made a solid thump. A few seconds later, another Incubator materialized in a flash of light, where it proceeded to sink it's mouth into the body of the dead Incubator and eat it. Homura almost vomited. Madoka's window was still open, and the new Incubator hopped inside. Homura was too far away from Madoka's house to stop it.

" _All right, next time."_

* * *

Homura had yet to reveal that she had traveled through time. She felt it best not to reveal her true powers either. That cat-rabbit alien- "Incubator" made her uneasy, and it was always following around one or the other of the girls.

" _Maybe I can turn to Miss Tomoe."_

She asked Mami if they could go get some coffee one day. "It's my treat today, Miss Tomoe. I just need some advice on being a magical girl." Mami readily agreed, and they walked to Piffle Princess, Mami's favorite coffee shop. They sat among Piffle Princess' signature pastel pink booths and cotton candy cushions. Mami looked right at home among the fancy pseudo-French Rococo décor.

"Miss Tomoe, did you know that magical girls turn into witches after their grief seeds become tainted?"

"No, what on earth makes you think that they do?" Mami arched an eyebrow, a look of surprise on her pretty face.

Homura took a deep breath to steel herself. "Well, the truth is, that I'm actually not from this time. I traveled back in time to repeat a bad future from happening and I watched Madoka turn into a witch in one of these futures. So that's how I know."

Mami just stared at her, and looked like she was trying really hard not to laugh. She nodded.

"Miss Tomoe, I know we haven't known each other very long, but please believe me! I'm not trying to pull your leg!"

Mami busted out laughing. Homura waited.

"You don't seem like the kind of person that would joke around like this. But how do I know that you're not just making this up?"

"Then ask me something that only I would know if I could know the future."

Mami looked thoughtful. "Do you watch tv shows?"

"Uh, I guess so?"

"What about "The Adventures of Natsumi Nakamara?"

Homura loved that show, and religiously watched for new episodes every week to see how Natsumi battled monsters and tried to save her friends. Even when she came back, timeline after timeline, she still watched the show as a break.

"What's going to happen next week?"

Homura tried to remember. "Let's see, last week was when Natsumi finally got her powers, so that means next week she is going to find out that she is the true princess that she and her friends have been protecting and trying to find. The real princess isn't actually Violetta, but a blind to protect Natsumi from being the target."

Mami's eyes went big. "No way!"

"Yes!"

Mami pondered this. "If that happens this week, I'll believe you."

Sure enough, Natsumi was revealed as the secret princess. Mami Tomoe called Homura on the phone right after the episode ended that week. "So what do you want to do, Miss Akemi?"

"In every timeline, if we all go up against Walpurgisnacht, we all die. So we can't beat it by ourselves. Do you know any other magical girls that we could team up with?"

There was a long silence on Mami's end. "Miss Tomoe?"

"Well," Mami exhaled slowly. "I do know a girl. Well, I _used_ to know a girl. She lives in a neighboring city, Kazamino city. But I don't know. We aren't close anymore."

"If Walpurgisnacht comes and we fight her on our own, nobody is going to be left. Please, Miss Tomoe."

Homura heard the crackle over the phone as Mami sighed on the other end. "Okay."


End file.
